


Flush your problems down the toilet

by harryisqueen



Category: Stranger Things (TV 2016)
Genre: Anxiety, Anxiety Disorder, Eleven | Jane Hopper Needs A Hug, Gen, Unhealthy Coping Mechanisms
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-31
Updated: 2019-05-31
Packaged: 2020-04-05 03:34:50
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,324
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19040320
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/harryisqueen/pseuds/harryisqueen
Summary: El's desperate to not have to take her medicine but to also keep the secret she's not taking it.





	Flush your problems down the toilet

El knew that what she was doing was wrong.

She knew she was flushing money down the toilet.

Quite literally.

But she couldn’t help it.

She hated taking those pills.

Scratch that she loathed taking them.

They made her feel as if she was being physically held down.

The panic attacks were still there they just felt internalized.

At first, she had just skipped taking her medicine. She’d tell Hopper she’d forgotten however he caught on quite quickly that she was forgetting nearly every night and gently scolded her.

“El you need to take these. Aside from the fact that they’re expensive, your doctor prescribed them so that your anxiety could be controlled. So please take them.” He had said.

El had resumed taking them for a few days when the awful feeling of being held down returned.

So she once again stopped taking them. This time however she was smarter about it.

She was not going to get caught skipping her medicine this time around.

So she began flushing them down the toilet.

Every night she’d brush her teeth go to the bathroom then shake the tiny pill she was supposed to take into her hand, drop it into the toilet and flush it.

This way she didn’t have to take her medicine and Hopper never had to know.

And not taking the medicine didn’t affect her too much.

Well, that’s what she had convinced herself of.

She was very much more on edge than normal and her anxiety attacks had increased significantly.

Mike and the rest of the party had picked up on it but hadn’t said much.

The one who had caught her in the act, however, was Steve.

The party was having a sleepover with Steve as the “adult supervision”.

She had just dropped the pills into the toilet when Steve walked into the restroom to see El looming over the toilet ready to flush it.

El quickly leaned forward and flushed it in a hurry and crossed her fingers in hope that Steve had not seen what she was doing.

El came home from hanging out at Mike’s house Monday to find Hopper & Steve sitting on the couch obviously waiting for her.

“Everything okay? What’re you doing home from work?” El asked.

“El we need to talk. Steve has brought something to my attention.”

El swallowed nervously then slowly went and sat down on the recliner chair.

“Why what’s wrong?” She asked.

“You’re flushing your medication down the toilet.” Hopper deadpanned.

“What no I’m not.”

El tried her best to keep the panic out of her voice. However, she had failed her voice coming out barely as a squeak.

“Don’t lie to me right now. Steve caught you doing it on Saturday so cut the shit and tell me the truth.”

“I’m not lying.” El practically shrieked desperate to keep her secret.

“El don’t lie, please. I saw what you were doing and it’s not healthy for you at all you’re prescribed those pills for a reason.” Steve said softly.

“What the hell are you doing here anyhow?” El snapped.

El normally liked Steve and if she was being truthful she loved him.

He was always kind, goofy and always make sure she got a true say in what the party did but right now she couldn’t stand him.

Who was he to rat her out then stand on his moral high horse?

“Jane El Hopper you will not take that tone with Steve or me. He did the right thing telling me what you were doing. I need to get back to work but this conversation is not over. You still have your tutoring session with Steve. I’ll talk to you later.”

With that Hopper stood up and walked out of the house.

Once she heard his car pull out of the driveway she stood up to head to her room.

There was no way she was doing her tutoring with Steve today.

She was pissed at him for snitching on her.

“Where are you going?” Steve called from behind her.

“To my room. I’m not in the mood to study or be around you. So screw right on off.”

With that, she slammed her bedroom door and flopped into bed.

                                                          --------------------------------

El woke up a few hours later realizing she had dozed off.

She could hear voices talking in the living room.

El turned to glance at her digital clock where the time 6:17 flashed.

Hopper had to have gotten home from work almost half an hour ago.

Shit.

Steve had probably already gotten the chance to tell Hopper about her not doing her tutoring.

Great.

El contemplated keeping herself locked in her bedroom for the rest of the night maybe even week but her empty stomach had something else to say.

She really should have grabbed something to eat before she went to her room.

With a defeated huff she climbed out of bed and cracked her bedroom door to slip out of it.

She could still hear the voices in the living room and could tell they belonged to Steve & Hopper.

As casually as she could El walked into the kitchen as if she hadn’t been called out earlier in the day for flushing her medication down the toilet and hadn’t stormed out on Steve and locked herself in her bedroom for 3 hours.

El was fixing herself and Hopper a sandwich for dinner like she did most nights when she heard Steve mutter that he was gonna go and wished Hopper good luck.

Dick.

“El can you come in here please,” Hopper said.

El tossed both of their sandwiches on a plate then made her way into the living room, handed Hopper his sandwich then sat down next to him on the couch.

“Steve told me you guys didn’t do your session today. Something about you telling him to screw off.”

“At least I didn’t say the f word,” El muttered.

Hopper briefly laughed at that.

Well, at least he wasn’t too pissed off.

 “That’s not what I want to talk to you about. I need to talk about the real issues not your tantrums towards Steve Harrington.”

El ducked her head in shame.

She knew what was coming.

“I’m not mad at you. Not anymore at least I’m just disappointed in you. Can you please tell me why you stopped taking your medicine and instead of telling me you didn’t want to take it you decided to stop taking it and decided flushing it down the toilet was a good solution.”

“I don’t like the way it makes me feel.”

“You may not like the way it makes you feel but wouldn’t you rather be on the medication than have to just suffer from the panic attacks and constant anxiety?”

“I don’t like having the anxiety but I also hate taking the medicine. It makes me feel awful.”

“If you truly can’t handle taking this medication there are other medicines that could treat your symptoms but in order for us to talk to your doctor about switching your medicine, you need to communicate these feelings to me. I need to know that you don’t want to be on this medicine because it hurts me when you have to suffer in silence.”

“I’m sorry. I just don’t want to put unnecessary stress on you. The upside down is over with you shouldn’t have more stress piled onto you.” El said in barely a whisper.

A few moments of silence passed over the two of them then Hopper let out a sigh.

“I’ll call your doctor tomorrow to get your medicine switched & this time around if you have negative feelings towards your medicine tell me so we can avoid having this conversation again.”

“Thank you, Hop. I love you.”

El then leaned over to give Hopper a quick hug.

He gave her a smile then ruffled her hair as the two began eating their dinner.

 

**Author's Note:**

> Thoughts? 
> 
> [My tumblr](http://www.harryisqu33n.tumblr.com)


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